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San Jose police unveiled the first phase of a groundbreaking policy on Tuesday to chronicle every time they stop and detain someone regardless of whether it yields an arrest, responding to long-standing concerns about possible racial profiling. The idea was the brainchild of Independent Police Auditor LaDoris Cordell. Kris Sanchez reports. (Published Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2013)

After two years of debate and discussions, San Jose Police announced Tuesday they are finally rolling out a new policy aimed at battling racial profiling.

The policy forces officers to record the ethnicity of people they detain but ultimately don’t place under arrest.

SJPD Try to End Racial Profiling, End Curb-Sitting

San Jose police unveiled the first phase of a groundbreaking policy on Tuesday to chronicle every time they stop and detain someone regardless of whether it yields an arrest, responding to long-standing concerns about possible racial profiling. The idea was the brainchild of Independent Police Auditor LaDoris Cordell. Monte Francis reports. (Published Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2013)

The new policy is in effect as of Sept. 1. San Jose’s Independent Police Auditor recommended the policy two years ago, and it’s now finally being implemented.

The policy deals with the three C’s: curbs, cuffs and cars. That refers to when officers initiate a stop, make someone sit on the curb, place them in handcuffs or force them to sit in the back of a police car.

SJPD Auditor Disagrees with 'Curb Sitting' Policy Change

Under acting chief Larry Esquivel, the San Jose Police Department has suspended a policy that orders officers to document all the stops the make -- arrest or not -- including the person's race and whether they are told to sit on a curb. Monte Francis reports. (Published Tuesday, April 23, 2013)

Former police chief Chris Moore ordered officers to document all the stops they make in those cases, and especially when there is no arrest. But, shortly after acting chief Larry Esquivel took over, he suspended the policy.

San Jose Police Union Warn Cadets of Pay Cuts

The sharp accusations keep flying between San Jose police and city hall. The police union just told new academy cadets they will get a pay cut once they graduate and hit the streets. The union blames the new voter approved pension reform system. NBC Bay Area's Damian Trujillo reports from police headquarters. (Published Thursday, Aug. 8, 2013)

The initial recommendation came in response to complaints from minority groups who said they were being targeted By San Jose police, especially with the practice of “curb sitting.”

A spokeswoman for the department explained why it took two years to make this happen.

“This was a long process,” Heather Randol said. “We retooled the initial policy, took input from the officers. We wanted to know how to make their job more efficient. We want to support proactive police work. We realize that it is vital to maintaining safe communities. And what we came up with was a workable policy that will be efficient for the officers."

In a telephone interview, San Jose’s Independent Police Auditor Ladoris Cordell said, “This policy is groundbreaking. No other police department in the country is doing this, and they should be. It’s good for everybody. It’s a win-win.”

The auditor’s office also said it would be December before the department will be able to glean anything from this new information.